Morel 403.5 modded by Dennis Murphy

Warning: These impressions are NOT scientific. I DID NOT have 15,000 hours of break in on my wires. I have not checked my listening methodology with the mfg or the modder. I am not a designer, recording engineer or physicist. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK

I've had the Morel 403.5's that Dennis Murphy modded for me for a couple of weeks now. He made a relatively small and inexpensive crossover adjustment ($10) and applied some Black Hole in the cabinet to dampen resonance.

However, Dennis Murphy has taken the speaker to a new level. I still have a pair of the stock speakers and I have had 4 listening sessions against the modded version. The difference is not subtle.

The modded version has better response in the treble. Cymbals and other high toned instruments are more sharply focused and hang in space better. Overall the treble is much clearer and the resolution is increased to my ears. I hear details in ambience and decay that I havent heard before.

Vocals still sound as good as they did before.

Also, the midbass is slightly tighter in the modded speaker where I have a small resonance in the stock version. I thought it was my room, but the mod has shown that the cabinet was partly to blame.

Dennis does undisputedly good work - at least so far I know a guy who's been waiting for your review on the new xover and he's been happy with the sound out of the box as well, even though he was shocked when he saw the FR plot. Good news for all.

I read about Dennis Murphy's latest speaker modification on the Morel Renaissance MLP-403.5 speaker. My feeling is that there is always room for improvement. I have not had a chance to hear the modified crossover yet and I hope I will have to opportunity to in the near future.

But, the main reason I am writing is to inform the readers and owners' of the MLP-403.5's that Morel USA will honor the full warranty that comes with the speaker even if Dennis' modification is done to the speakers.

Enjoy listening,

Mikhael Shabani

Wow! That's a classy guy. I bet those speakers sound pretty darn good. It's good to know the manufacturer will honor your warranty. I wonder if they will change the design if the new xover is thought to be better by the Morel folks?

Words of warning to any one thinking of ordering these speakers. I ordered this pair early Oct. Received them Oct 14. Wasn't to impressed (IMHO). Shipped them back Oct. 18 with return auth # and within the 7 day audition period. UPS notified me they arrived back in Boston Oct. 22. Called Morel USA 2 weeks after arrival to ask if anything was wrong because I was not credited the refund amount. Was told by the owner nothing was wrong and to be patient it takes time to credit back (It never has taken much time in any other instance for me) 3 weeks after arrival I disputed the charge with my credit card company. To this day this is not resolved. I could be out 495+60 dollars shipping. Buyer Beware! This is the worst customer I have ever incountered.

Words of warning to any one thinking of ordering these speakers. I ordered this pair early Oct. Received them Oct 14. Wasn't to impressed (IMHO). Shipped them back Oct. 18 with return auth # and within the 7 day audition period. UPS notified me they arrived back in Boston Oct. 22. Called Morel USA 2 weeks after arrival to ask if anything was wrong because I was not credited the refund amount. Was told by the owner nothing was wrong and to be patient it takes time to credit back (It never has taken much time ...

Retailers have 30 days to credit you back from the time they receive the merchandise and sometimes it can take longer: vacations, etc. Hopefully you will get this resolved.

btw, Morel has bent over backwards for me. They sent me a replacement grill for free as well as breaking up a numbered pair up so I could have a center channel. They also sent me an annotated diagram of the crossover with possible suggestions for improvement that I requested. And they also offered me full credit on the return of my 3rd pair; after I had them for a couple of months! Finally, they agreed to honor the 5 year warranty on my speaker with a crossover that was redesigned by someone they dont even know.

I think if you call up Justin or Mikhael, they will take care of you just fine. Be patient. Its the holidays

Thanks for the review Birdwizard, and for bringing to attention a really good speaker value. It looks like it has quality drivers with a large 9" midbass with high power handling. And made even better by Dennis Murpthy. I'm thinking getting a pair and modifying per DM mods for a second system.

Wizard, I'm happy you are enjoying the speakers. For that kind of money, they are a no-brainer. Eugene is really nice. I was in Ashland during the summer. My wife used to live there when she attended Southern Oregon State.

Jerry, Dennis says his mod for these speakers is very simple. He's selling the completed mod for his cost of components, something like $20 I believe. They are sealed and use very nice drivers. I love those Morel tweeters. Murphy is coming out with a more extensive mod but I don't think it's necessary to make too many changes. If you get them please let me know. It would be a good excuse to get together!

Thanks Jack, Dennis had designed the other crossover before he found this simpler solution based on reversing the phase of the tweeter. The other crossover had a lot of parts and was much more expensive and complicated, for a slightly better frequency response. Another downside was that it made the speakers significantly less sensitive. So all things considered, the current mod was considered a more elegant solution, I think.

The Morels are 90db sensitive. I know of one guy using a 30w Cayin tubeamp with excellent results. He says that even the bass definition is superbwith the tube amp.

The Morels have a sound that is certainly defined by their tweeter. I think this driver is excellent and unique sounding, and I haven't heard a tweeter that sounds quite the same. For that reason I can only really compare this speaker to the GMA Europa's, which have the same tweeter.

There is this quality to the Morel tweeter that is definately prominant in both speakers; for instance a ride cymbal hangs in space exactly, very resolving and with a decay that just keeps going to the smallest possible drop of sound. I would say the same for vocals on up. I think the treble is a bit more resolving in the Morels though. And I feel that the Europas focus much heavier on the vocals (Roy would argue its my setup of course).

I also think the Morels have a larger sweetspot. From 10 feet away, I get that good lucky feeling 3 feet anywhere from center. This includes forward, backward, sideways, up or down. They are 74 iinches apart with a touch of toe in.

As with the Europa's, there is an ear filling quality. The speakers seem to cover you in sound even at low volumes. The Morels absolutely suck for background music; its a very penetrating 3 dimensional sound image that you must pay attention to if you are in the room.

Distortion is also very low, even at high volumes, and you can hurt your ears by playing too loud and not noticing. Clean and clear with a big fullrange sound.

btw, the Dennis Murphy mod is a must. Especially for $20 a pair. That guy is a saint.